Posts by Bob Rhodes

The gospel lesson for this upcoming Trinity Sunday is the part where Jesus ascends to heaven after his resurrection on earth. The disciples have lost him once and they are all the more frightened to lose him once again. But as Jesus ascends, he shares these words: “And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

This Sunday is Pentecost! Not only is it sometimes celebrated as the birthday of the Christian church, but its also a time to remember the early signs of inspiration in receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit!

This Sunday, we continue our series on creativity. Rev. Jeri asks what our lives of faith would be like if we entered into a creative process to discover new ways in which to express our faith and our love for God in Jesus Christ.

This Sunday, we launch into a new sermon series. Our current reality of social isolation in the midst of a pandemic is not the only example of widescale stress and anxiety on the human species. Psychologists and historians continue to point out that one expression of humanity seems constant across such periods of stress – creativity.

We’ve all heard it before: suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. I stand by my belief that God doesn’t want us to suffer and that suffering is the way to salvation. At the same time, we can’t deny the fact that destruction is always somewhat a part of the reconstruction process. And death is part and parcel of the process for birth.

Setting aside the COVID-19 virus, I suggest we have already been in need of revival. Our world has seemed increasingly partisan. Surely, we have a feeling of being in the wilderness. We are seeking sustenance and refreshment. We are seeking God’s renewing and forgiving Spirit. We are in need of revival!

On Easter Sunday people all over the world celebrated in ways previously unimagined. There was a rise in telecasting while church pews remain empty. Only Jesus could bring forth life, life in abundance, from what some people say is a time of complete devastation.

This upcoming Sunday is Palm Sunday, the day where we usher in Jesus as the King of the Jews and recognize his true authority. The people back then had no idea that Jesus’ kingdom would look vastly different from the political kingdoms of old and new. Jesus’ kingdom was about love, sacrifice, compassion, and service.